Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

VIRT has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Bank of America lowered Virtu Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $43.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Virtu Financial from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Virtu Financial from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $40.00 target price (up from $38.00) on shares of Virtu Financial in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Virtu Financial from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $37.25.

Virtu Financial Trading Down 0.9%

NASDAQ:VIRT traded down $0.37 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $40.61. The company's stock had a trading volume of 675,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,188,391. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $39.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.46. Virtu Financial has a twelve month low of $21.55 and a twelve month high of $44.58. The stock has a market cap of $6.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.68.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $497.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $444.23 million. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 27.39% and a net margin of 9.61%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 30.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.76 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Virtu Financial will post 3.13 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Virtu Financial

In related news, Director John Nixon sold 6,965 shares of Virtu Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total value of $298,241.30. Following the transaction, the director now owns 33,923 shares in the company, valued at $1,452,582.86. This trade represents a 17.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Douglas A. Cifu sold 178,320 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.57, for a total transaction of $6,877,802.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 408,867 shares in the company, valued at $15,770,000.19. The trade was a 30.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 362,846 shares of company stock valued at $14,079,615. 46.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Virtu Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Virtu Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Virtu Financial in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 243.0% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 782 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 554 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 172.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 870 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 551 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new position in shares of Virtu Financial during the first quarter worth $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.78% of the company's stock.

About Virtu Financial

Virtu Financial, Inc operates as a financial services company in the United States, Asia Pacific, Canada, EMEA, Ireland, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Market Making and Execution Services. Its product includes offerings in execution, liquidity sourcing, analytics and broker-neutral, capital markets, and multi-dealer platforms in workflow technology.